Homemade, microbe-fermented cabbage can offer a delightful crunch and a refreshingly clear acidity compared to the soggy, pasteurized, jarred variety from the store shelves. It also boasts a multitude of lactic acid bacteria that are along for the ride.

As with most fermented foods,
variations of fermented cabbage popped up in many regions of the world. Some
preparations use finely shredded cabbage. Others, such as Korea’s kimchi,
Japan’s hakusai-zuke, or a variation in Eastern Europe, are made from whole
fermented cabbage heads. Some are made with caraway seeds; others include
seaweed or even fermented krill.

To make a traditional German-style
sauerkraut, the ingredients are simple: cabbage and salt. Other seasonings,
such as caraway seeds, are optional. All of the contents will go into a clean
fermenting vessel: a jar, a crock, or whatever you have handy.

Chop
cabbage head into thin strips and place shreds in a large bowl.

Add about
a tablespoon of sea salt for every pound or two of cabbage. This draws moisture
from the cabbage in addition to making the brine inhospitable to harmful
microbes.

Now roll
up your sleeves and get to work. With your hands, roughly smash and massage the
cabbage, squeezing handfuls of it as hard as you can. The goal here is to
actually break the cell walls and release as much water as possible. Don’t
discard the water—you’ll be needing that.

If your
hands are tired, take a break. And then work the shreds some more. Continue
until you have extracted enough water to totally submerge your cabbage.

Now
transfer the cabbage and liquid to your fermenting vessel and, if desired, add
more salt and any seasonings.

Press the
cabbage down below the surface of the liquid. Because some will always want to
float back up (making it an enticing breeding ground for mold or kahm yeast,
which forms a film across the surface of your fermenting liquid). So you’ll
want to find a way to keep it under the liquid. Some people use a plate that
fits inside the vessel opening weighted down with something heavy, such as a
stone, a heavy dish, or a brine-filled plastic bag.

If your
vessel doesn’t come with a lid, use cheesecloth (or any other cloth) to cover
the top to keep out dust and any more macro creatures.

Now it’s
time to wait. Keep the vessel in a cool space, and don’t be afraid to taste
throughout the process. Owing to environmental differences (particularly
temperature), this is the best way to figure out when it is ready—rather than a
prescribed time period. Ready, of
course, depends on your preference. Some like it crisp and light, whereas
others wait until it is soft and full of funk.

Once you’re happy with the level of fermentedness, transfer all the remaining kraut and liquid into jars in the fridge to slow fermentation.

Katherine Harmon Courage is an award-winning freelance journalist, editor, and author. She is the author of Cultured: How Ancient Foods Can Feed Our Microbiome and Octopus! The Most Mysterious Creature In the Sea. Her work has also been featured in The Best American Science and Nature Writing.

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